Combining Rib Eye Steaks Into a Roast...

[pastameshugana]

Hello all,

I just scored a great deal on some pre-cut (thick) ribeye's at the butcher. Unfortunately, the deal was only for the precut, I couldn't get a larger piece.

I'm really hankering to roast them all together as one big roast - is this possible?

I was thinking about aligning them all (they're from the same primal so they match) and tying them up. Maybe putting some of my spice rub between the pieces. Then trimming and eating it like we would an entire roast.

Any tips, warnings, suggestions?

Thanks!

[bmdaniel]

The problem is food safety - you want to pasteurize the exteriors of all the steaks (since they are potentially contaminated) but that will be impossible to do in roast form without seriously overcooking the meat (or cooking sous vide).

If you (and everyone you are serving) would be okay eating them raw, then you can probably doing (realizing you are taking a similar risk).

[Mjx]

The problem is food safety - you want to pasteurize the exteriors of all the steaks (since they are potentially contaminated) but that will be impossible to do in roast form without seriously overcooking the meat (or cooking sous vide).

If you (and everyone you are serving) would be okay eating them raw, then you can probably doing (realizing you are taking a similar risk).

Actually, it is possible to treat the exterior of each piece before tying them together.

Unfortunately, the work that describes this (Guess What Came to Dinner, by Gittelman), is in a moving box, and I can't lay hands on it. Possibly someone else has it?

You soak the meat in water to which a small but effective quantity of chlorine has been added; what I cannot remember is how much bleach per volume of water, and how long it needs to be soaked.

[Chris Hennes]

It's worse than eating it raw: you're going to take whatever bacteria are there and incubate them at a warm-ish temperature for a couple hours in the oven where they will multiply like crazy. If you have your heart set on roasting, I'd give each side of the steak a quick high-heat sear before combining them. Alternately, you could boil them briefly (60 seconds, I think? I can't remember the number you're supposed to use).

[bmdaniel]

It's worse than eating it raw: you're going to take whatever bacteria are there and incubate them at a warm-ish temperature for a couple hours in the oven where they will multiply like crazy.

Good point Chris.

[pastameshugana]

Yikes - thanks for the heads up! Looks like I'll be making new plans.

[Norm Matthews]

If it is any consolation, if I had a nice big rib roast, I'd be tempted to cut into nice thick steaks anyway. I like nice crusty Delmonico steaks better than a rib roast.

[vengroff]

If it is any consolation, if I had a nice big rib roast, I'd be tempted to cut into nice thick steaks anyway. I like nice crusty Delmonico steaks better than a rib roast.

Me too!

[IndyRob]

Would salting the steaks prior to assembly mitigate the food safety issues?

Edited February 14, 2012 by IndyRob (log)

[Chris Hennes]

Insofar as adding salt would reduce the water activity, yes, it would help, as would a marinade of red wine and oregano (a combination which is particularly good at killing bacteria), or a bath in boiling or chlorinated water: there are a number of steps that you can take to help mitigate the risk. As usual it becomes a question of deciding what level of risk is acceptable to you. Just remember that you're going to have the center of that roast square in the optimal bacterial growth temperature range for an extended period of time, surrounded by plenty of food sources.

[lesliec]

Running a blowtorch over the cut surfaces would help kill the nasties. Or, as Chris mentioned, boiling water. Chris couldn't remember the timing and neither can I, but my memory from discussions in the SV thread is that you just need to dunk the meat in and out (watch your fingers!).

[Chris Hennes]

Yep: at 75°C it takes one second to achieve a 6.5D reduction (for E. Coli, I believe), so at 100°C you're basically talking instantaneous.

[Robert Jueneman]

I think you could briefly blanch the steaks, then sprinkle them with meat glue (transglutaminisase) and compress them in the fridge overnight. That ought to work better than tying them.